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Reform sought as cyber charter school costs
top $42M in NEPA districts
Blogger commentary: So
let's be perfectly clear. Choice is what is important, not student outcomes,
which have been consistently dismal, nor the use of public tax dollars. Not one
cyber charter ever achieved a passing score of 70 during the 5 years that the
state's School Performance Profile was in effect. In a
2015 Stanford University report, researchers said their analysis showed severe
shortfalls in reading and math achievement. The shortfall for most cyber
students, they said, was equal to losing 72 days of learning in reading and 180
days in math during the typical 180-day school. And at the tuition rates
quoted in this article the money far exceeds the parents' own tax burden. When
they make a "choice" they are choosing to spend their neighbors tax
dollars also.
Citizens Voice BY
SARAH HOFIUS HALL, STAFF WRITER / PUBLISHED: APRIL 7, 2019
As cyber charter
school enrollment grew over the last decade, Carbondale Area School District’s
budget reserves disappeared. Now operating with a $2.5 million deficit, the
district started its own cyber program last year, joining a growing number of
districts trying to find relief. The 37 school
districts in Northeast Pennsylvania pay a combined $42 million in cyber charter
school tuition each year. The total amount paid — and the way the state
determines tuition — has many people calling for reform. Cyber charter schools
are privately operated, publicly funded schools authorized by the state and
paid for by school districts. Advocates say cyber schools provide options for
families seeking choice for their children’s educations. Children learn virtually
on charter school-provided computers, at no cost to the families. The cost
comes to the districts instead. Bills in the state House and Senate would allow
districts with their own cyber programs to stop paying tuition to cyber charter
schools. If a student decided to attend the cyber charter school, the family
would be responsible for the tuition.
Guest Opinion: William Harner’s cyber charter schools
opinion must have hit a nerve
Intelligencer
Opinion By Robert L. Leight Posted at 5:16 AM April 7, 2019
A guest opinion by
Quakertown Community School District Superintendent William Harner published
recently in The Intelligencer must have struck a nerve. It certainly drew a quick response
from the conservative Commonwealth Foundation. The writer resorted to name-calling in her first paragraph, calling his
article a “rant,” “misleading” and showing “incredible disdain for Pennsylvania
parents.” At the risk of provoking a similar response, I will venture my
opinion on the issue of cyber charter schools. Cyber charter schools are
programs which provide instruction by the internet, as compared with schools
the students attend, which are known as brick-and-mortar schools. Two bills in
the general assembly, if passed in their current form, would require parents to
pay for cyber charter schooling if their school district of residence offered
its own equivalent cyber program. These bills are House
Bill 526and Senate
Bill 34. Cyber
charter schools are the weakest link in Pennsylvania public education. They
generally perform near the bottom on the state’s standardized tests and have
graduation rates below the state average.
Cyber charter school costs are under the microscope
TribLive by DEB ERDLEY | Saturday,
February 23, 2019 6:00 p.m.
Tiffany Nix,
superintendent of Leechburg Area schools, watched in frustration for years as
hundreds of thousands of dollars went out the doors of her small, cash-strapped
district with families who enrolled their children in cyber charter schools. “We
were paying $13,000 to $24,000 a year for each of them. It comes to hundreds of
thousands of dollars a year out of a budget of $15 million,” Nix said. Last
year, Leechburg settled on a new option and contracted with the Seneca Valley
School District to launch its own cyber academy at a cost of $3,470 per student.
At the Jeannette City School District, which piggybacked with Hempfield Area’s
cyber academy, tuition is even lower. Jeannette pays $1,500 a year for
mainstream students who enroll in the local district’s cyber academy, business
manager Paul Sroka said. Nonetheless, districts must budget hundreds of
thousands of dollars — or millions, in some larger districts — to cover tuition
for families who opt to place their children in one of 16 licensed public cyber
charter schools in Pennsylvania. The costs affect every public school, in small
districts like Leechburg and Jeannette with about 900 students each, to
Pittsburgh Public Schools, which has about 23,500 students. “Charter schools in
general are a tremendous drain on school budgets, and cyber charters are part
of it,” said Ira Weiss, longtime solicitor for Pittsburgh Public. “What’s more
troubling with cyber charters is they are making an enormous profit because the
cost of operating one is very small compared to a brick-and-mortar school.”
“Then they ran the numbers a second time
and used a formula capping payments at $5,000 a year for mainstream students
and $8,865 for special education students. Education Voters of PA used those
tuition estimates based on a study by the Pennsylvania Association of School
Administrators. In the end, they found districts could have slashed costs from
the $463 million spent to $211 million, a savings of more than $250 million in
a single year. “We singled out cyber charter schools because it is such an
egregious problem that lawmakers cannot wait any longer to address ,” Spicka
said.”
Cyber charter school spending by district in Pa.
TribLive by DEB
ERDLEY | Saturday, February 23, 2019
6:00 p.m.
Tuition for
Pennsylvania’s public cyber charter schools is based on a calculation that uses
local district costs. Tuition for those schools varies from one district to the
next and can range from about $7,500 a year for mainstream students to as much
as $40,000 a year for special education students. Figures like that have made
state lawmakers and public education advocates take notice. Susan Spicka is
executive director of Education Voters of Pennsylvania, a nonprofit public
education advocacy organization. Her group crunched the numbers and analyzed
payments that each of the state’s 500 school districts paid to 16 public cyber
charter schools in the 2016-17 academic year.
Blogger note: Total cyber charter tuition
paid by PA taxpayers from 500 school districts for 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016
was over $1.6 billion; $393.5 million, $398.8 million, $436.1 million and
$454.7 million respectively. We
will continue rolling out cyber charter tuition expenses for taxpayers in
education committee members, legislative leadership and various other
districts.
In 2016-17, taxpayers
in Senate Majority Caucus Chair .@SenatorMensch’s school districts in Berks,
Bucks, Montgomery and Northampton Counties had to send over $13.3 million to
chronically underperforming cybers that they never authorized. #SB34 (Schwank) or
#HB526 (Sonney) could change that.
Links to additional bill information and several resources have been
moved to the end of today’s postings
|
Boyertown
Area SD
|
$1,582,202.52
|
|
Brandywine
Heights Area SD
|
$115,722.77
|
|
Easton
Area SD
|
$1,881,859.44
|
|
North
Penn SD
|
$1,928,469.36
|
|
Oley
Valley SD
|
$488,433.67
|
|
Palisades
SD
|
$476,204.39
|
|
Perkiomen
Valley SD
|
$466,522.34
|
|
Pottsgrove
SD
|
$925,648.00
|
|
Pottstown
SD
|
$1,783,048.92
|
|
Quakertown
Community SD
|
$1,748,268.89
|
|
Souderton
Area SD
|
$881,944.12
|
|
Upper
Perkiomen SD
|
$1,115,284.97
|
|
|
$13,393,609.39
|
Has your state
senator cosponsored SB34?
https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billInfo/bill_history.cfm?syear=2019&sind=0&body=S&type=B&bn=34
Has your state
representative cosponsored HB526?
“It is an old story in eastern Delaware
County, where school districts such as Upper Darby and William Penn have seen
rising enrollment, coupled with skyrocketing pension payments and charter
school costs leave the districts strapped. The same holds true in places like
Pottstown, Norristown and Coatesville.”
Editorial: 'American dream' demands school fair funding
reform
Pottstown Mercury
Editorial April 6, 2019
It is the base --
the foundation on which a solid, middle-class life has always been built. And
it has been one of the bedrock obligations of the state to provide. ut among
the startling revelations in a new report released by the advocacy group Public
Citizens for Children and Youth on the increasing struggles of the middle class
is something that will come as no surprise to far too many residents of
southeastern Pennsylvania. Families are playing with a deck that is stacked
against them. The study, titled “Under Water: What’s Sinking Families in
Delaware County,” concludes that the American dream is becoming out of reach
for many middle-class families. The study concludes that stagnant wages and
rising costs for everyday staples such as child care, housing, food,
transportation, taxes and health care are leaving families -- even those making
as much as $75,000 a year -- in the red, unable to make ends meet. The report
underscores the importance of good schools as a crucial factor in a child’s
upward mobility. And that is why correcting the state of funding public education
in Pennsylvania remains critical. Funding is currently tilted in favor of
districts with solid economies and thriving tax bases, while those with
depressed economies and ravaged tax bases suffer. In effect, the state has
created an uneven playing field, with far too many families -- and children --
penalized for no reason other than their zip code.
Real estate agents join the push for education funding in
Pa.
WHYY/Keystone
Crossroads By Avi Wolfman-Arent April 8, 2019
The fight to boost
education funding brings lots of people together — teachers, superintendents,
politicians. But advocates want to add another constituency to the mix: real
estate agents. That’s the target audience of a new report by ReadyNation Pennsylvania, an advocacy group that wants to
increase education funding. They argue Pennsylvania realtors would
benefit from more education dollars because of the potential for increased home
values. The release of the report
coincided with a panel discussion in Delaware County, where local real estate
agents met with Democratic politicians and education advocates. “Southeast
Pennsylvania gets hits particularly hard by the inequities in state funding,”
said Jamie Ridge, president of the Suburban Realtors Alliance, which represents real estate agents in the four collar counties
surrounding Philadelphia.
Report: Good schools boost home values, more state funds
needed
Delco Times By Kevin Tustin
ktustin@21st-centurymedia.com April 5th, 2019
RIDLEY TOWNSHIP — A
new report released Friday enforced the notion that property values are
contingent on student achievement in local schools, and the state’s current
education funding schemes play a role in that. A panel of lawmakers, realtors
and policy analysts met at Ridley High School to discuss the findings of “Real
Estate Markets Thrive When PA Schools Work,” the report compiled by the
organization Ready Nation that contends that adequate funding for public
schools has an effect on the achievement of public school children, and, in turn,
how that correlates to a community’s home values. “Inadequate state funding for
K-12 education has only exacerbated this problem in struggling communities –
placing even more pressure on local property taxes to fund education,” reads a
portion of the report. “This relationship is most pronounced when improving
student performance in communities with historically underperforming schools.
Greater state investment in equitable public school funding can foster these
positive outcomes for Pennsylvania’s students and communities.” Education
funding from the state is among the lowest in the country, causing inequities
among the 500 school districts. Schools that are properly funded have more
resources to help all students learn and achieve, but others have to scrape by
on their tax bases which may already be very high, especially in poorer
communities, and achievement may not be as high as their more affluent
neighbors.
Guest Column: Upper Darby students have right to great
school
Delco Times By
Rachel Mitchell Times Guest Columnist April 6, 2019
It starts with
modern classrooms that are not overcrowded.
Every Upper Darby
School District student has the right to the best public education possible.
That education starts with modern schools where classrooms are not overcrowded.
Unfortunately, many Upper Darby Schools are overcrowded, and our aging school
buildings need the same upkeep every homeowner and business must make over
time. After a careful, transparent three-year examination of every capital need
in the school district, dozens of public meetings, interviews with parents and
staff, first-hand examinations of the buildings, and a review of the
school-by-school data, the result was clear. The district must build new
schools and fix its aging school buildings now. Ten years ago, Upper Darby
began renting Charles Kelly Elementary in Drexel Hill and Walter M. Senkow
Elementary in Glenolden to ease overcrowding at Bywood, Stonehurst, and
Highland Park Elementary Schools. Since then, enrollment has continued to
increase. Many students attend classes in modular units, some in the basements,
and others in a school outside the boundaries of the Upper Darby School
District. Drexel Hill and Beverly Hills Middle Schools face the greatest
overcrowding. To alleviate the elementary school overcrowding, school boundary
lines will need to change, which will create more overcrowding in the middle
schools. A viable, fiscally responsible solution for taxpayers may exist on
school district-owned land in Clifton Heights and Aronimink. The district has
begun civil engineering, geotechnical, site options and traffic studies, along
with public meetings to see if those sites are viable. Unfortunately, some will
only say “No,” regardless of the facts on any plan presented. Upper Darby
School District parents, taxpayers, teachers, and students must know the facts.
School districts are paying to burnish their brands to
counter images and compete with charters
Inquirer by Kathy Boccella, Updated: April 6, 2019
The Norristown Area School District hasn’t been in the news much in the last few years, and what little
coverage it did get tended to focus on fights with the state over lack of
funding, or how it coped with high poverty rates in the Montgomery County river
town. So when Christopher Dormer took over last August as superintendent, one of
his first and biggest priorities was a sweeping district-wide effort to rebuild
the brand of Norristown’s schools. In just seven months, the Norristown schools
have unveiled a new logo (a distinctive block “N”) and begun working on a
redrawn eagle mascot, hired a communications specialist and launched new
accounts on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram — all toward a goal of bringing
back a positive vibe. “If you’re not going to sit there and tell your story,
you leave it to other people to tell your story,” said Dormer, who dreams of
seeing kids and their parents out on the town sporting the new “N” on logo hats
or shirts. “These old narratives became the story.” Norristown joins the
growing numbers of Philadelphia-area public school districts where superintendents
now talk of “building their brand” in the same enthusiastic tones as cola
executives or internet start-ups — and often are willing to invest energy and
tax dollars on PR firms or designers to make it happen. Re-branding efforts in
Norristown, Upper Darby, Coatesville and elsewhere are partly due to increased
competition for students — and the dollars attached to them — with heavily
advertised cyber- and brick-and-mortar charter schools, as well as private and
parochial schools. But school leaders also insist it’s an effort to counteract
negative news headlines in an era of tight budgets and culture wars in the
classroom.
Rural broadband deficiency hits economic growth,
education, regional leaders say
Centre Daily Times BY SARAH PAEZ APRIL 08, 2019 07:27 AM, UPDATED 7 MINUTES AGO
Both the public and
private sectors should contribute to bolstering rural broadband access in
central Pennsylvania, where uneven connectivity limits economic development and
growth, according to a survey of regional leaders this month. Conducted with
reader input by the Centre Daily Times, the survey found concerns that poor
broadband access in outlying areas also inhibits access to health care and some
students’ ability to learn. Fourteen leaders chosen by the CDT received the
questionnaire, asking what they see as the most important consequences of the
broadband deficiency. The respondents,
including officials in higher education, government, health care and the
nonprofit sector, are part of the Pennsylvania Influencer Project — a
month-long effort by the CDT, its parent company McClatchy and the Knight
Foundation to spur discussion around the state’s rural broadband access.
Forum speaker says teaching Pre-K part of ‘virtuous
cycle’
Johnstown Tribune
Democrat By Dave Sutor dsutor@tribdem.com Apr 3, 2019
Early childhood
education is a key part of what Donna Cooper described as a “virtuous cycle.”Cooper,
Public Citizens for Children and Youth’s executive director, explained how teaching
pre-kindergarten youngsters both basic knowledge and social skills can help
shape the adult they will eventually become during her visit to the University
of Pittsburgh at Johnstown’s John P. Murtha Center for Public Service and
National Competitiveness on Tuesday. And
then those adults continue the cycle by making positive impacts. “We invest in
the kids, and they end up investing in the community,” Cooper said during an
interview before delivering the keynote address during a forum titled “Poverty’s
Impact on Early Literacy.” “And they also end up making the community more
prosperous. And we end up reversing the consequences of childhood property.” She
put her message into the context of challenges facing Cambria County, where
about 15 percent of the population lives in poverty, with Johnstown proper
having a rate of approximately one-third. “I think the big message that we want
to get out to the folks here is that Cambria County, like a lot of America, is
having a hard time with sort of the economic transformation that we’re in,”
Cooper said. “One of the ways that communities can reverse their economic
prospects – one of the ways – is by recognizing the importance of investing in
early childhood education because of the long-term positive benefits that early
childhood education, when it’s high-quality, returns.
School Visit Program celebrates 12 years of free access
for museum tours
Bucks County Courier
Times By Staff report Posted Apr 7, 2019 at 6:00 AM
The Rose Group, a
Newtown Township-based franchisee of Applebee’s Grill and Bar, renewed its
partnership with the Michener Art Museum in Doylestown Borough for 2019 to
provide access to art and experiential art education for students through the
School Visit Program. In its 12th consecutive year, the School Visit Program
has provided free admission to more than 49,200 students. In 2018, the Michener
Art Museum welcomed more than 2,900 visitors through the program. The School
Visit Program pairs specially trained docents with small student groups to tour
the museum and make connections between the art on display, the artists and the
content being studied by the students in the classroom. The goal is to help
students grow their creativity and strengthen connections between the visual
arts; science, technology, art, engineering and math; history; geography; and
language arts. After their museum visits, students receive free passes for a
child’s return to the Michener, along with an Applebee’s coupon good for a free
kid’s meal or $5 off an adult entrée.
Targeted by Republicans, Pa.’s Conor Lamb walks a fine
line on Capitol Hill. So far, it’s working
PA Capital Star By Robin Bravender
Capital-Star Washington Bureau April 8, 2019
WASHINGTON — U.S.
Rep. Conor Lamb is on a winning streak. The moderate Democrat from western
Pennsylvania’s 17th Congressional District has proven himself to be an adept
politician — winning not just one, but two, competitive U.S. House elections in
2018. He didn’t do it by excoriating President Donald Trump or
promising to push a liberal agenda in the U.S. House. He’s a Marine and former
federal prosecutor who calls the Affordable Care Act a flawed bill, welcomes
natural gas extraction, and ran a campaign ad featuring him wielding a rifle. Now, Lamb is walking a fine line on
Capitol Hill as he represents a district that backed Trump within a party
that’s focused on ousting the president in 2020. Republicans, meanwhile, are
eyeing his seat for a pickup in the next congressional election. While some of
his colleagues are getting behind ambitious policy proposals like the Green New
Deal and Medicare for All, Lamb appears to be seeking middle ground — a tactic
that’s become less common lately in a deeply polarized Congress. “He’s
going to be cautious and not jump into a very progressive agenda, there’s just
no doubt about that, because it’s the nature of his district,” said G. Terry
Madonna, director of the Center for Politics and Public Affairs at Franklin and
Marshall College.
Death of the gerrymander?: Two cases give the Supreme
Court another chance
Voting is a
sacred constitutional right, and it’s the Supreme Court’s job to protect it.
THE EDITORIAL BOARD
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette APR 5, 2019 8:00 AM
After hearing oral
arguments in two separate cases, the U.S. Supreme Court has been afforded the
chance to finally corral the dubious practice of partisan gerrymandering. The
court would be wise to seize the opportunity. The justices are considering
cases — one from North Carolina and the other from Maryland — that allege
partisan legislators altered district boundaries so egregiously as to usurp the
will of the voters. Given the court’s newly cemented conservative majority,
many voting-rights advocates have expressed concern that partisan
gerrymandering could be given a legal rubber-stamp from the highest court in
the land. Imagine people’s surprise, then, when Justice Brett Kavanaugh offered
a plainspoken acknowledgement of the practice’s inherent dangers: “Extreme
partisan gerrymandering is a real problem for our democracy,” he said.
A Changing Landscape: Five Trends to Watch in Charter
School Philanthropy
Inside Philanthropy
by Caitlin Reilly April 4, 2019
Last week, Inside
Philanthropy published an in-depth look at philanthropy and charter schools
that examined how far this movement has come and where some of its prominent
backers see themselves heading next. The article revealed that private support
for charter schools is at an inflection point. While some of the movement’s top
backers are digging in and preparing for the next phase of their work with the
schools, others have taken a step back from charters or substantially lowered
their expectations that this innovation will drive larger changes in K-12
systems. Meanwhile, some of the biggest
new philanthropists coming to education lately have focused on other strategies
to improve student outcomes, such as personalized learning. Those new funders
seem a lot less interested in old rivalries between charter and district
schools than their predecessors. Despite these shifts in education funding
priorities, though, major private support for charter schools will continue to
flow, and charters will remain an important part of the K-12 landscape, especially
in urban areas. Given this prominent role, we thought it would be useful to
look at key emerging trends that could affect the charter movement down the
line. We’ve identified these trends based on our reporting for the recent story
on the charter movement and other education coverage.
https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/2019/4/4/five-trends-to-watch-in-charter-school-philanthropy
Seattle schools are giving 2019 standardized tests during
the holy Muslim month of Ramadan. Here’s the trouble that caused.
Washington Post Answer Sheet By Valerie Strauss April 4
This year, the
Seattle public school system is giving annual standardized tests to many of its
53,000 students on days that coincide with the Muslim holiday of Ramadan, a
holy month in which the religious fast from sunrise to sunset. That calendar
overlap caused concern in the Muslim community after school system officials
wrote a form letter for principals to share with parents that included
suggestions about how to get their children to take the exams. The basic
advice: Ensure that kids get enough sleep and eat before they come to school so
they have “enough energy for the day.” Only one principal, Katie May of
Thurgood Marshall Elementary, used material from the letter in an email to families
at her school. But that was enough to spark the controversy, the latest that
many districts have seen in recent years as they attempt to accommodate growing
numbers of students with different religious and cultural beliefs.
PA Schools Work Berks County Thu, April 11, 2019 6:00 PM
– 8:00 PM EDT
Berks County Intermediate Unit 1111 Commons Boulevard
Reading, PA 19605
PA Schools Work is
organizing in Berks County. We are looking for advocates to fight for more
funding for our students. Agenda will include detailed information about
individual school districts, meeting with local Berks representatives to share
your stories, statewide support for your efforts and much more. We want to work
together to make a difference. School leaders, parents, community members and
local citizens that care about education are all welcome. Registration starts
at 6 with meeting beginning at 6:30. Networking available so bring material to
share about your organization too. If you have any questions, please contact
Sandra at smiller@circuitriderforpaschools.org.
Success Starts Here is a multi-year public awareness campaign
sharing positive news in PA public education.
.@PSBA .@PasaSupts .@PAIU .@PenSPRA1 .@PSEA .@PAPRINCIPALS .@SuccessStartsPA Read more stories and share your own on http://www.SuccessStartsHere.org .
Together we can harness the power of all to make a difference in our schools and communities! Hear from the experts and learn how to advocate! Free breakfast & givewaways. Don't miss out!
Sponsored by Norristown Men of Excellence, The Urban League of Philadelphia & PA Schools Work.
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/norristown-parents-students-for-education-tickets-59590097586
The League of Women Voters of Delaware County and the Delaware County Intermediate Unit present: EPLC 2019 Regional Training Workshop for PA School Board Candidates (and Incumbents) April 27th 8am – 4:30pm at DCIU
Ron Cowell of The Pennsylvania Education Policy and Leadership Center will conduct a regional full day workshop for 2019 Pennsylvania School Board Candidates.
Date & Time: Saturday, April 27, 2019, 8am to 4:30pm
Location:
Delaware County Intermediate Unit, 200 Yale Ave. Morton, PA
Incumbents, non-incumbents, campaign supporters and all interested voters
are invited to participate in this workshop. Registration is $75 (payable by
credit card) and includes coffee and pastries, lunch, and materials. For
questions contact Adriene Irving at 610-938-9000 ext. 2061.To register, please visit http://tinyurl.com/CandidatesWksp
PSBA: Nominations for
the Allwein Society are welcome!
The Allwein Society is an award program recognizing school directors who
are outstanding leaders and advocates on behalf of public schools and students.
This prestigious honor was created in 2011 in memory of Timothy M. Allwein, a
former PSBA staff member who exemplified the integrity and commitment to
advance political action for the benefit of public education. Nominations are
accepted year-round and inductees will be recognized at the PASA-PSBA
School Leadership Conference, among other honors.
PSBA: 2019 State of
Education report now online
PSBA Website February 19, 2019
The 2019 State of Education report is
now available on PSBA.org in PDF format. The report is a barometer of not only
the key indicators of public school performance, but also the challenges
schools face and how they are coping with them. Data reported comes from
publicly available sources and from a survey to chief school administrators,
which had a 66% response rate. Print copies of the report will be mailed to
members soon.
All
PSBA-members are invited to attend Advocacy Day on Monday, April
29, 2019 at the state Capitol in Harrisburg. In addition, this year PSBA
will be partnering with the Pennsylvania Association of Intermediate Units
(PAIU) and Pennsylvania Association of School Administrators (PASA) to
strengthen our advocacy impact. The focus for the day will be meetings with
legislators to discuss critical issues affecting public education. There is no
cost to attend, and PSBA will assist in scheduling appointments with legislators
once your registration is received. The day will begin with a continental
breakfast and issue briefings prior to the legislator visits. Registrants will
receive talking points, materials and leave-behinds to use with their meetings.
PSBA staff will be stationed at a table in the main Rotunda during the day to
answer questions and provide assistance. The day’s agenda and other
details will be available soon. If you have questions about Advocacy Day,
legislative appointments or need additional information, contact Jamie.Zuvich@psba.org Register for
Advocacy Day now at http://www.mypsba.org/
PSBA members can register online now by logging in to myPSBA. If you
need assistance logging in and registering contact Alysha Newingham, Member
Data System Administrator at alysha.newingham@psba.org or call her at (717)
506-2450, ext. 3420
Join A Movement that Supports our Schools & Communities
PA Schools Work website
Our students are in classrooms that are underfunded and overcrowded. Teachers are paying out of pocket and picking up the slack. And public education is suffering. Each child in Pennsylvania has a right to an excellent public education. Every child, regardless of zip code, deserves access to a full curriculum, art and music classes, technical opportunities and a safe, clean, stable environment. All children must be provided a level chance to succeed. PA Schools Work is fighting for equitable, adequate funding necessary to support educational excellence. Investing in public education excellence is the path to thriving communities, a stable economy and successful students.
http://paschoolswork.org/
Save the Date: PARSS Annual Conference May 1-3, 2019
Wyndham Garden Hotel, Mountainview Country Club
Pennsylvania Association of Rural and Small Schools
https://www.parss.org/Annual_Conference
PSBA Tweet March
12, 2019 Video Runtime: 6:40
In this installment of #VideoEDition, learn about legislation
introduced in the PA Senate & House of Representatives that would save millions
of dollars for school districts that make tuition payments for their students
to attend cyber charter schools.http://ow.ly/RyIM50n1uHi
PSBA Summaries of Senate Bill 34 and House Bill 526
PSBA Sample Board Resolution in Support of Statewide
Cyber Charter School Funding Reform
PSBA Sample Board Resolution in Support of Senate Bill 34
and House Bill 256
How much could your school district and taxpayers save if
there were statewide flat tuition rates of $5000 for regular ed students and
$8865 for special ed.? See the estimated savings by school district here.
Education Voters PA
Website February 14, 2019
https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billInfo/bill_history.cfm?syear=2019&sind=0&body=S&type=B&bn=34
Has your state representative cosponsored HB526?
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